The total oil and gas export earnings of the six-member GCC countries collectively increased to US$737.5bn in 2012 from US$695.9bn the previous year, according to the Institute for International Finance (IIF)
It was the highest income from oil sales in the GCC's history and more than double their oil revenue of nearly US$305bn in 2005, the Washington-based IIF said in a study.
The income rose to US$35.9bn from US$34.6bn in Oman, from US$104bn to US$107bn in Qatar, and to US$16.5bn from US$16.3bn in Bahrain.
The surge was a result of an increase in oil prices to US$110 a barrel from nearly $106 in 2011 and a rise in the region's crude output.
Saudi Arabia produced around 9.88mn bopd per day in 2012 compared to 9.24mn bopd in 2011. In 2012, UAE hiked production to nearly 2.68mn bopd from 2.55mn bopd in 2011, while Kuwait's supplies grew to around 2.78mn bopd in 2012 from 2.57mn bopd the previous year. Oman recorded 810,000 bopd last year from about 780,000 bopd in 2011.
Saudi Arabia's oil export earnings upped to around US$351bn last year from US$326bn in 2011 while the UAE's income grew to nearly US$124.7bn from US$119.2bn in the same period.
The report also showed higher earnings boosted the GCC's current account surplus to about US$375bn in 2012 from $328 billion in 2011, according to the IIF.
